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Teen Poetry Contest Winners

Congratulations to the 11th Annual Teen Poetry Contest Winners!

Each year we celebrate National Poetry Month in April with our Teen Poetry Contest.
Teens in grades 7-12 from Fredericksburg, Stafford, Spotsylvania, and Westmoreland, are invited to submit up to three original poems. Out-of-region library cardholders may also enter.

This year's winners were chosen (anonymously) by Amanda Rutstein, poetry professor at the University of Mary Washington and manager of the Fredericksburg Writing Center.

Entries were accepted online between April 1 - 14, and winners were selected from participants in grades 7-9 and grades 10-12.

We had 320 entries this year - the most EVER!

Winners are awarded prizes and invited to read their work at Teen Poetry Night at Headquarters Library, Monday, May 19, 7:30-8:30.

And the winners are ...

Congratulations to the 10th Annual Teen Poetry Contest Winners!

Each year we celebrate National Poetry Month in April with our Teen Poetry Contest.
Teens in grades 7-12 from Fredericksburg, Stafford, Spotsylvania, and Westmoreland, are invited to submit up to three original poems. Out-of-region library cardholders may also enter.

This year's winners were chosen (anonymously) by Claudia Emerson, winner of the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry.
Entries were accepted online between April 1 - 14, 2013, and winners were selected from participants in grades 7-9 and grades 10-12. We had 158 entries this year!

Winners are awarded prizes and invited to read their work at Teen Poetry Night at Headquarters Library, Wednesday, May 1, 7:30-8:30.

Congratulations to the 9th Annual Teen Poetry Contest Winners!

Each year we celebrate National Poetry Month in April with our Teen Poetry Contest.

Teens in grades 7-12 from Fredericksburg, Stafford, Spotsylvania, and Westmoreland, are invited to submit up to three originial poems. Out-of-region library cardholders may also enter.

This year's winners were chosen (anonymously) by Allison Seay, Arrington Poet-in-Residence at University of Mary Washington.

Entries were accepted online between April 1 - 14, 2012, and winners were selected from participants in grades 7-9 and grades 10-12.

Winners are awarded prizes and invited to read work at Teen Poetry Night at Headquarters Library: Monday, April 30, 2012, 7:30-8:30.

We had nearly 200 entries this year! Here are the winners ...

1st place, Grades 10-12

A Thousand Notions

by Kaitlin
Grade 11, Chancellor High School

I have this notion that stars can be crushed,
Blown from the palm like dandelion seeds
And delivered.
A thousand times I’ve tried it,
But the glass pieces of wishes still wait, shivering,
For winter to be over.
And a thousand times I’ve tried forgiveness,
And a thousand times I’ve tried to stay.
All the words I try to speak get stuck in my throat,
Stagnant.
I give it to the stars,
Hoping that somewhere, somehow,
You’re getting the notion too.